Account update systems are known in the art. For example, card processors have recently announced that merchants who provide their customers with recurring payment processing for periodic services, such as Internet service providers or toll tag services, can obtain updated account information in response to requests for individual customers, such as when payment data submitted for a customer comes back with an indication that the payment data is incorrect. Additionally, merchants who keep account information “on file” can obtain updated account information. These processes are designed to allow merchants to troubleshoot problems for customers that have enrolled in recurring payment programs or otherwise have their account information on file.
Although such account update services are of value, the processes used by the payment processors require merchants to receive error messages and identify individual records for submission, such as after an error is received. Thus, although such processes allow merchants to take corrective action, they do not prevent the errors from occurring and also require merchants to incur significant administrative costs in handling such situations.